BC Books Online was created for anyone interested in BC-published books, and with librarians especially in mind. We'd like to make it easy for library staff to learn about books from BC publishers - both new releases and backlist titles - so you can inform your patrons and keep your collections up to date.
Our site features print books and ebooks - both new releases and backlist titles - all of which are available to order through regular trade channels. Browse our subject categories to find books of interest or create and export lists by category to cross-reference with your library's current collection.
A quick tip: When reviewing the "Browse by Category" listings, please note that these are based on standardized BISAC Subject Codes supplied by the books' publishers. You will find additional selections, grouped by theme or region, in our "BC Reading Lists."
When a 19-year old female polar bear named Barle is rescued from the inhumane conditions of a circus in the Caribbean and flown to safety in Detroit, zookeeper Else Poulsen renowned throughout the world for her work rehabilitating bears who have been abused is on hand to meet her and help her on the road to recovery and self-discovery. Thus begins Barle’s gradual introduction into the world of polar bears. Slowly she forges relationships with the other bears in the zoo and eventually mates with a young male and successfully raises a cub. By living in a caring, enriched environment focused on her welfare, Barle is able to recover from the trauma she had suffered at the circus and develop skills that are important to thriving as a polar bear. As Poulsen documents, however, not all captive bears are so fortunate. Augmented with black-and-white photographs, Barle’s Story provides a rich and moving portrait of a remarkable bear and of the author’s inspiring work to help her discover her true polar bear ways.
Else Poulsen holds a B.SC. degree in biological sciences. She has worked at the Calgary and Detroit zoos and is known internationally in the zoo and animal welfare community for her work with captive bear husbandry and rehabilitation. She has taught at conferences and workshops around the world and won the Zookeeper Excellence Award for bear research from the American Zoo and Aquarium Association in 2000. She lives in southern Ontario and works with zoos and other animal welfare organizations as an animal behavior specialist.
Gay Bradshaw is Executive Director of The Kerulos Center a non-profit organization based on the scientific understanding of animals as thinking, feeling, sentient beings, and the author of Elephants on the Edge: What Animals Teach Us about Humanity.
"Barle's Story is a book that will move you to tears of sadness and tears of joy. ...I urge you to read Bärle's Story and to share it widely. I also urge you to share her story with youngsters"Psychology Today, Dr. Marc Bekoff, author of The Emotional Lives of Animals
A rare opportunity to see a polar bear up close and personal, in ways that no adventure tour, nature show, or visit to the zoo can ever provide.”Dr. Gay Bradshaw